The coronavirus pandemic has provided life sciences researchers with unprecedented opportunities. Here are 9 resources to help you maximize these opportunities. The coronavirus pandemic has transformed the life sciences landscape, consuming most of the recent research opportunities. But it also provides researchers with unprecedented opportunities to collaborate, innovate and create new knowledge.

Unprecedented opportunity brings unprecedented resources—many of which are free to use. From Slack channels to SOPs, here are 9 tools to help any researcher looking to set up a testing lab, optimize workflow, or otherwise participate in this global science project.

Global Slack channel

More than 13,000 researchers from around the world participated in the discussion, the largest global discussion on scaling up COVID-19 testing. It was filled with collaborative discussions that touched on everything from troubleshooting RNA extraction workflows and identifying vendors to overcoming sample and supply chain logistics and applying for emergency use authorization from the FDA. You can also join the conversation; just click the link above and email [email protected] for a 24-hour invitation.

Pop-up Testing Lab Blueprint

The Innovative Genomics Institute (IGI) provides detailed guidance on how to set up a CLIA-certified SARS-CoV-2 testing laboratory. The IGI is a team of researchers from UC Berkeley and UC San Francisco who assembled a diverse, interdisciplinary team and worked around the clock for three weeks to expand coronavirus testing in the Bay Area. Their guides include tips on everything from specific automated workflows and protocols to staff training and compliance guidance.

Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for Academic Collaborating Diagnostic Laboratories

The Crick COVID19 Alliance provides a step-by-step guide on how they are creating a diagnostic lab in an academic setting with external partners. The Crick COVID19 Consortium worked with UCL Hospitals, the Health Service Laboratory (HSL), the Institute of Cancer Research and the Francis Crick Institute to create the testing set-up in just over two weeks. Their downloadable guides cover everything from laboratory safety information and Class 2 sample inactivation guidelines to RNA extraction protocols and making homemade buffers.

Clinical Research Sequencing Test Platform

The Broad Institute has opened access to its Clinical Research Sequencing Platform (CRSP) for SARS-CoV-2. The Broad Institute, a collaboration between researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Harvard University, uses their platform to run real-time reverse transcriptase (RT)-PCR diagnostic tests. For any researchers looking for testing facilities, the Broad Institute has their facilities open. Their instructions include specimen collection and transport guidelines, as well as FAQs for patients and providers about diagnostic tests and test fact sheets.

Genome engineering tools

Synthego provides genomics researchers with a range of tools to increase the speed and effectiveness of developing COVID-19 diagnostics and treatments. These tools include custom Cas13 guides for RNA collection and a multi-array CRISPR sgRNA knockout library targeting 330 human genes that interact with SARS-CoV-2 proteins. Their website has links to all of these tools, as well as the published test data they used to create them.

SwabSeq test proof of concept

Octant’s SwabSeq NGS diagnostic workflow proof-of-concept. Octant is a biotechnology company using proprietary technology combining synthetic biology, genome engineering, next-generation sequencing and computational tools to create a protocol to scale COVID19 sequence-based testing that is simple, cheap and sensitive. It's called SwabSeq, and their lab notes documentation includes everything from protocols and test code to data charts and internal notebooks.

Massively parallel diagnostic assay proof-of-concept

Proof-of-concept for a massively parallel NGS diagnostic assay by Penn State synthetic biology researcher Howard Salis. Salis publishes a preprint detailing how massively parallel diagnostic assays (MPDA) leverage next-generation sequencing to make thousands of viral RNA measurements simultaneously in a single assay and process up to 19,200 patients per workflow sample. His preprint details his workflow, which combines viral RNA extraction, reverse transcriptase (RT) using patient-specific primers with unique barcodes, and single-pool polymerase chain reaction (PCR), followed by next-generation sequencing (NGS).

Mobile Test Lab

Extensive collection of blueprints, protocols, and other resources for OpenCell. OpenCell, a company that provides mobile, affordable container lab space to biotech startups, is a leader in UK testing and is rapidly expanding high-throughput testing